Soccer champs

On May 21st, one of the valley's two U-15 soccer teams, Methow Gold, won the Tonasket Soccer Tournament, winning all four of their games without letting a single goal be scored against them. This is the first time a Methow team has ever won their age division at the tournament.
Congratulations, Methow Gold! And "Good Effort" to the three other Methow teams that went over the hill and played their hearts out!

Tournament champs! Photo by Steve Mitchell.

 – Paul

Music Days

Cascadia Chorale

Where's all the smoke coming from?

From Los red hot Pinkertons burnin' it up at the Film Festival!

<sent from my sock drawer>

Meet the Press

Laura Gunnip and Robin Doggett applied some last minute squeak-removal tweaks to the new Chandler & Price letterpress earlier today in preparation for the "Meet the Letterpress" party at Door No. 3. In theory, by the end of the evening the big machine will have a new name.

Posted by Sue Misao

<sent from my sock drawer>

Winter at the pass

The North Cascades Highway opened just in time for a taste of winter, the one prior or the one to come, who knows?

From the top of South Early Winters Spire.

– Paul

Liberty Bell athletes

Track team off to state competition at Cheney, cruising by the newspaper office today at 12:15 pm:
 

Softball & Tennis teams left earlier in the day for state championships in Yakima.

Go teams!

Editorial meeting

Happening now:

"We should tell all our readers about it, so they’re not as clueless as we are."

(–Overheard at today's editorial meeting)

Posted by Sue 

<sent remotely from my sock drawer>

Opener

WSDOT east side crew member Tyler Miller, who was on the clearing effort from day one, swings open the Silver Star Creek gate closure at noon while a dozen or so cars waited to travel over the North Cascades Highway.

May 25: Second latest opening date in the North Cross State Highway's 38 years.

– Paul

Blackpine

Don't make any Blackpine Lake plans for a while:

Sue

<Sent from my sock drawer>

Mazama mural

Next time you're in the Mazama Store, you'll most likely see this colorful mural created by local artist Lindsey Ashford hanging front and center. It really adds to the place!

– Paul

Gotta have the goat!

Got 'em!

Having stalked, located, and captured the "wild" asparagus, I arrive home: victorious!

I know what you're thinking, but if I told you, I'd have to kill you . . . .

~Laurelle Walsh~

Past WA Pass

Under brilliant sunny skies this Tuesday (May 17), only a few days from being the second latest opening date of the North Cascades Highway, the east side crew "blew" by Washington Pass on their way to meet the west side crew (who are as far as Rainy Pass but were dealing with a muddy mess of a slide back near Panther Creek). Despite ample rain over the weekend, not many slides triggered naturally. The crew may be dropping charges by helicopter near the end of the week to loosen up what snow and cornices are hanging above the highway.

At Washington Pass.

Here's a long quote from WSDOT communications guy Jeff Adamson:
"You all can imagine the uproar we'd cause if we kept the gates closed while the pavement is clear, especially from those who don't appreciate the avalanche danger from Cutthroat Ridge to west of Rainy Pass - note Sunday's slide. It only takes a few degrees or a couple hours of direct sunlight (or more snow!) to trigger a slide. That's why we'll try to empty them by placing charges via helicopter directly into the starting zones, if we have to. 
NOTE: for those who have complained we're not working 7 days a week to reopen – take heart – the forecast I'm looking at right now suggests it's going to be warmest Saturday and Sunday, so avalanche and maintenance personnel could be working this weekend."

I bet those hard-working crews up on the highway would like to see some overtime. They deserve it.

– Paul

Big ole wall of snow on LB#1.

Lost River cleared

While the cleanup continues at "Goat Wall" Creek on Lost River, the road is clear for traffic.

– Paul

A lot of that rock was on the road earlier.

Floodage

Gate Creek overflows, cutting off Lost River.

In what could be a sign of things to come, the culvert on Goat Wall Creek, several miles past the Mazama Store on Lost River Road below the ramparts of Goat Wall, became jammed Saturday afternoon spilling water and debris across the road rendering it impassable to vehicles (well, at least no one was going for it, but there was talk).
County road department personnel and equipment were on the scene starting to deal with the situation.

– Paul

A tricky situation.

End of week #5

The east side crew has nearly reached Washington Pass with the west side crew working past Rainy Pass. The Liberty Bell slide paths are huge as are several along Cutthroat Ridge. Plenty of snow and cornices are still visible up high. Should be an interesting month or so up on the highway after the road opens that will compliment the upcoming action with swollen tributaries and flooding on the valley floor.

The two Kodiak blowers making a final cut in front of WA Pass Peak at the end of the day on Thursday.

The flamingo knows which way to look.

Looking south toward Kangaroo Pass and the headwaters of Early Winters Creek.

– Paul

Methow moment: Sunflower race video

Racers ready to rumble. Image from Terry Hunt's video.

Check out:

MethowTV

For a nice video recap by Terry Hunt of the 31st Sunflower Relay and Iron marathon race on May 7, 2011.

– Paul

Clearing and re-clearing

WSDOT crews and the contract labor and equipment of Pipken Construction of Wenatchee (which outbid longtime North Cascades Highway clearing contractor Llyod Logging of Twisp by $25) keep chipping away at their effort to clear the state's northern crossing route that started on April 11.
At this point, we are looking at the latest opening date in 35 years.
Apparently today the east side crew, which has been tackling the large piles of snow below the Liberty Bell massif just west of the hairpin turn (and just passed what is most commonly, and astutely, referred to as "Spire Gulley," not Spiral Gulch or what have you), is doing some blasting work to bring some snow down.
Some natural avalanches have come down already the past few days. Below is a photo of the some of the crew cleaning up a slide on Tuesday from the Cutthroat Ridge section a mile or so below the hairpin curve.

Back clearing on the NCH. Photo by Larry Goldie.

– Paul

Sunflower run

Taylor Woodruff is the first participant to cross the finish line on Saturday's Mazama to Twisp Sunflower run.  The Liberty Bell runner charged hard on the final leg for his team, Two Fast, passing Iron winner Steve Andersen of Portland, Ore., who dominated the field, to say the least.
It was another fine day for the race with quite the thunder shower moving through in the early afternoon.
As usual, from Mary Sharman's always inspirational t-shirt designs to all the folks who helped with the race, the MVSTA put on another exemplary event as only they can do.
Thirty-one and counting....

Taylor coming in hot. Photo by Larry Goldie.

– Paul

Getting closer

The east side crew clearing the North Cascades Highway had made it past the hairpin and is chipping away at the big slide paths below the Liberty Bell massif. There's still lots of snow waiting for some warm weather to come down. It sounds like they may have to do some blasting.On the west side, the crew is two miles from Rainy Pass.

Chipping away at LB#1.
Photo from WSDOT.

Thus ends week #4. Twelve DOT working days until Memorial Day weekend.

– Paul

Reel roots

The 2nd annual Twisp Rural Roots Film Festival is coming up!
Check out the line-up!
Get ready for some great flicks!
Popcorn, anyone?

– Paul